Joint Replacements

Do you recommend them?

By Annette Beach

For anyone who has been diagnosed with any form of arthritis, you know how mean and vengeful this disease can be. The pain and destruction is mind-boggling and often too hard to describe. Sometimes there’s swelling and redness, allowing others to see the discomfort. But most of the time the symptoms cannot be seen, making it difficult for others to understand.

Many times I have referred to my arthritis as a beast living inside of me, feeding off of my joints. It roams my body until it finds an area of interest, feasts until there’s nothing left, then moves on, never leaving my insides.

Thankfully, medical technology has developed enough to offer solutions to those of us housing the unstoppable beasts. In my opinion, joint replacement surgery is the answer. I’ve had 13 joints replaced and cannot complain about any of them. I do not always regain full range of motion and I’m often limited in my activities of daily living, but the activity of the disease is stopped (at least in that particular area), reducing the pain and discomfort.

Typically, when I see the destruction to a joint is irreversible and the pain interferes with my daily living, I’m ready to schedule surgery. Once I know there’s nothing we can do to improve my situation, I start looking at the calendar and making arrangements.

I’ve often described pain as being two types: bad pain and good pain. To me, bad pain is what I experience before surgery. Every day it gets worse and I cannot predict how it will affect my life or what will happen next. Good pain is the pain after surgery. It hurts and I’m not fond of it, but I know each day it will improve and in a matter of time, it will be minimal.

What kinds of surgery have you had because of your illness? Have you had joints replaced? Would you recommend the surgery? Do you have tips or suggestions that would help others?